Physician Assessment Centre of Excellence

Privacy and security

Privacy, Confidentiality and Personal Information

  • PACE is committed to protecting the privacy of your personal information and our staff understand the importance of maintaining patient confidentiality. Our staff, physician candidates and physician assessors receive training in privacy and confidentiality, and our records are kept on a secure electronic health records system. Each system user has a unique identifier and password, and regular audits of user access are conducted. 
  • Your personal information will be treated as confidential by our team and is shared within PACE on a need-to-know basis. Disclosure of your personal information outside PACE is only permitted with your consent unless the disclosure is permitted by law or in circumstances where there is risk of harm to yourself, harm to others or if information is subpoenaed.

We collect, use and disclose your personal information as needed in order to:

  • Evaluate your health care needs and provide health care to you.
  • Evaluate the health care you receive and the physician candidate providing this health care by video streaming the appointment between the candidate and the assessor providing oversight.
  • Communicate with other health care providers outside PACE who are involved in your care in order to administer your care, including, but not limited to specialists, pharmacists, physiotherapists, etc. This communication may involve making referrals for other health services, the exchange of written documents or reports, the ordering of diagnostic tests (e.g., blood tests, x-rays, psychological assessments), etc.
  • Receive payment from your provincial health care plan, private insurer, or other body for delivering care to you.
  • Conduct quality improvement and risk management activities.
  • Plan, administer and manage our internal operations (e.g., appointment scheduling by staff).
  • Fulfill other purposes permitted or required by law (e.g., reporting abuse).

Observing Patient Appointments: Audiovisual Equipment Use During Patient Appointments 

Part of your patient care team is an internationally trained physician who, when delivering care is observed by a fully licensed family physician. This observation plays an important role in the assessment of internationally trained physicians. 

All clinic rooms are equipped with video and audio devices for assessment purposes only. This allows for the observation of care. Your care is observed by a family physician who is part of the assessment team. This is referred to as a ‘virtual observation assessment.’

Here is how the virtual observation assessment works: 

  • The virtual observation assessment will only be viewed by qualified assessors. Virtual assessments are conducted in real time by qualified physician assessors. No other physicians, candidates, staff, or management will have access.
  • Assessors may only conduct a virtual observation assessment from a secure location. Assessors will only review assessments from secure locations using PACE-issued devices.
  • Physicians will remind you of the camera locations and when a virtual assessment is taking place at each appointment.
  • The video and audio of the virtual observation assessment cannot be shared with patients or saved as part of a patient’s medical record.
  • There is no recording of any interactions; the system is used solely for live evaluation by trained assessors. A record is kept of who viewed the audio and video as part of the physician assessment program.
  • When an intimate exam is required, camera and audio devices will be shut off. In such instances, the physician assessor or a family practice nurse will be present in the examination room.
  • As virtual observation assessments are not saved, they cannot be used in cases of medical malpractice, insurance claims, and forensic evidence.

Patient rights & consent

If you are concerned about using video or audio tools for assessment purposes, you can ask our office to arrange for you to maintain your original registration date on the Need a Family Practice Registry (NAFP).

If you choose to revoke your consent within six months of becoming a patient at the PACE clinic, you can ask our office to arrange for you to maintain your original registration date on the NAFP. If you choose to revoke your consent beyond six months of becoming a patient at the PACE clinic, you will need to register with the NAFP again.